Saturday, January 21, 2012

Laughlin Desert Challenge Day 2

Day 2 of the Laughlin Desert Challenge found Rob MacCachren at the top of the podium after a tough battle with Juan Carlos Lopez. “Last year we were close and we ended up second, but this a great way to start the new season,” said MacCachren.  “Last year we swept both rounds in San Felipe and the shocks have really come a long way over the years and these little shock coolers up on top; that’s our secret weapon for San Felipe.”  “There was some great racing today. I can’t wait to do it some more.”

Rob Mac on his way to winning the LDC
The hired gun from Tecate brought the RPM/Clyde Stacy truck across the line in 2nd position. This solidifies Juan Carlos Lopez’s promise to be a threat in the 2012. “It was very hard and technical out there, lots of whoops,” said a very happy Juan Carlos.  “It was either too soft or too hard, but it was a lot of fun. The truck ran great and we had no problems.”

"PIN" at LDC
Taking home third was Steven Stroble who just came off a stellar year nearly pulling off a championship in a rival race series. “The course changed as the race went on and we lost some right at the end,” said Stroble. “The motor started to go a little bit soft and something in the suspension too.” “It was chewed up out there but we came home with a good finish.” “Right at the end, Rob (MacCachren) caught us so we let him by and we chased him on in to the finish line. I didn’t want to hold him up. We weren’t going to be able to get the win but it’s a great way to start the season. We’re going to San Felipe; we’re running for the points and everything counts to get these things across the finish line.”

Top honors in Class 1 was Cody Parkhouse.  “It is a brutal, brutal track. Everything is more squared off and twice as big – which suits this car well, but it beats you up,” said Cody. “We had no issues at all; we ran clean and ran fast. We got it (the win), but we’ll have to wait until it is official. Once again, I ran around with my dad for a lap or two, and it was fun.”

Cody Parkhouse
Second in Class 1 was Harley Letner. “It was a flawless run but I had to put a backup motor in after Friday, so it’s a little low on power but what it lacks in power, I make up on suspension” said Harley. “Our crew sets it up so great and it just works great. It was rough out there. Yesterday was a freeway compared to now; it was insane!”

And rounding out the top three in Class 1 was Brian Parkhouse. “We had no problems; it was just rough and I couldn’t keep up with the young kids.” said Brian. “I was pretty close to Harley (Letner) on splits, but we’ll take third just the same.” “The car worked great and the setup was good. The course got a lot rougher today. We expected that and made some adjustments on our shock package and compensated for it pretty well.”

Brian Parkhouse
The racing at the LDC was great as always but the overall atmosphere left something lacking compared to years past. What once was a exciting, action packed weekend of watching your favorite racers in door to door combat for the win is now just a shell of its former glory. Over the years, the race has been put through the ringer, shrinking in size and becoming less and less of a spectator sport. Many have speculated why, but from this writer’s point of view, the blame falls directly on the BLM and their questionable interpretation of the law. We keep loosing more and more and becoming less and less free to do what we enjoy doing. The days of treking out with the family, finding a nice spot, setting up a barbeque and watching a race are quickly going away, maybe even gone, and now given way to watching from behind a 6ft fence 300 yards away from a flat section of dirt. Where will it end? This race is a perfect example of why we need to get our asses in gear and fight for our sport. It’s time! Let’s do it!

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